Completing the Task
PIKUDEI PIKUDEI
Two objectives in life
“Our task is to invest effort while it is G-d’s task to make these efforts bear fruit,” goes a popular Jewish maxim. The implication of this is that we do not have to be goal oriented.
Rabbi Tarphon’s statement, in Pirkei Avot: “It is not your duty to compete the task, nor do you have the right to desist from it,” seems to echo this sentiment On the other hand, this week’s Torah portion and Haphtarah that emphasize the completion of the task of the building of the Temples—seem to suggest otherwise.
In the words of a contemporary writer: “The good news is that it makes no difference where you start, because the bad news is that you have to do it all.”
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To reconcile these two approaches, we must understand that Judaism discerns two distinct objectives in life.
Every detail counts
The first objective is for the Jew to realize that in every moment of the day, in every breath of life and in every place, there is a challenge. Whether or not one will do another good thing afterwards does not detract from the importance of this moment’s challenge.
Every act, word or thought that one does for G-d has infinite importance. Even if one were to know with certainty that they will not be able to follow up their good deed with others, they should perform the one-time mitzvah with zeal and joy. As far as G-d is concerned, every mitzvah counts and every Mitzvah possesses infinite and cosmic power.
Maimonides in one of his famous letters explains how G-d rewards the solitary good deed of the most wicked and holds the most righteous accountable for the solitary PIKUDEI transgression. In Judaism every detail counts, because from the vantage point of a truly infinite G-d no action can be too small.
From this frame of reference it follows, that anytime we can influence a person to do one mitzvah, even if it would not be followed up by another one, we should. Every Mitzvah stands on its own and possesses intrinsic and infinite value.
Realizing the ultimate plan
But, there is also a second dimension to Judaism’s view of life. G-d created the universe with a purpose and plan. According to our Talmudic Sages, this plan was for the world to become a “dwelling place for G-d;” a place where G-d feels at home. This objective is realized by the cumulative effect of all the Mitzvos that were performed by all generations going back to Sinai. Every Mitzvah we do that involves physical action and effects, adds one more “building block” to the palace we construct for G-d.
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When a sufficient number of Mitzvos will have been performed, when there be will be “critical mass,” G-d’s presence will then be manifest in this physical world, and His purpose for creation will have been realized. This is the Messianic Age.
From this vantage point, our goal must be to complete the task. We must look to fulfill the purpose for which the world was created and cannot be satisfied with our accomplishments to date, no matter how significant they may be.
Throughout Jewish history, we were sensitive to both dimensions. We accentuated the importance of a solitary act and we, simultaneously, looked at our efforts in terms of the ultimate outcome. The closer we get to making G-d’s plan a reality, however, the more focused we become on the “goal” aspect of Judaism.
Because of our proximity to the Messianic Age, we can appreciate the increased emphasis given to the theme of Moshiach and the future Redemption by the greatest PIKUDEI Jewish leaders in recent centuries, decades and years.
We can now also appreciate why the Book of Exodus concludes with the description of and emphasis on the completion of the Mishkan. The Mishkan within which G-d’s presence was manifest, represented G-d’s objective that all of the universe becomes a sanctuary for G-d. From the perspective of making the world into a dwelling place for G-d, one cannot be satisfied with a mere contribution to the goal, no matter how significant. The focus is indeed on completing the task.
This does not mean that we no longer treasure the solitary act of goodness. On the contrary, now, even the solitary act of goodness possesses even more significance than in the past. In the past, every act was viewed as an intrinsically holy and positive act. In the present pre-Messianic era, in addition to that perspective that still remains, every solitary act may very well be the final act that will complete the construction of the “Mishkan, the Palace of G-d” and bring about the fulfillment of G-d’s Master Plan. That one PIKUDEI solitary act, to paraphrase Maimonides, can literally and permanently change the world for the good.
As we stand on the threshold of the Messianic Age, we should indeed be cognizant of our unique responsibility and privilege to be the ones who will actually put the finishing touches on the palace that we have been building for G-d for the last three thousand years.
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From the book Light from the Future: Parshas Vayakhel-Pikudei by Rabbi Heschel Greenberg, published by the Jewish Discovery Center.
